Kenneth Olden, Ph.D., Director, and Samuel Wilson, M.D., Deputy Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS); also genetic scientists from Howard University (Washington, DC), Indiana University (Indianapolis), University of California at Berkeley, University of Utah (Salt Lake City), University of Washington (Seattle), and Translational Genomics Research Institute (Phoenix, AZ) and others. Most will be available for interview following press conference.

WHAT:

Press conference to announce results of first phase of Environmental Genome Project, a milestone in characterizing genes that confer susceptibility to such chronic conditions as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and asthma. The project's results will lead to improved disease prevention and health management.

Background

NIEHS has reached a key milestone: Researchers have resequenced and cataloged 200 environmentally responsive genes, including links to vascular disease and leukemia. At the April 16, 2003, press conference, leading gene researchers will highlight case studies and results to date on discovering DNA variation that are important tools for research on environmentally associated diseases.

To mark the completion of Phase I of the Environmental Genome Project (EGP) and the 50th anniversary of the Nobel Prize-winning description of the DNA double helix, NIEHS is sponsoring a half-day symposium preceding the press conference. Presenters will discuss specific EGP efforts as well as the future use of DNA variation in gene-environment interaction research and its implications for human disease. The NIEHS symposium and press conference are linked to the 2-day major scientific symposium "From Double Helix to Human Sequence-and Beyond," hosted by the National Human Genome Research Institute on April 14 and 15, 2003. ( For more information: http://www.genome.gov/about/april2003/(http://www.genome.gov/About/April2003/) .)

Individual interviews can be arranged through NIEHS. Contact David Brown at 919-541-5111.

NIEHS supports research to understand the effects of the environment on human health and is part of NIH. For more information on environmental health topics, visit http://www.niehs.nih.gov (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/index.cfm) . Subscribe to one or more of the NIEHS news lists ( http://www.niehs.nih.gov/news/newslist/index.cfm (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/news/newsroom/newslist/index.cfm) ) to stay current on NIEHS news, press releases, grant opportunities, training, events, and publications.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov (http://www.nih.gov/).